News U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) announced this afternoon that he will have surgery next week for early stage prostate cancer. The 61-year-old senator, who won re-election last month to another six-year term, said he got the diagnosis after a physical in late November and that he expects a "full and speedy recovery" after his surgery Dec. 20. Wyden expects to return to work when the Senate re-convenes ...   More

News As The Oregonian reported earlier today, a Marion County grand jury decided not to charge former Assistant Attorney General Brent Foster with a crime for his conduct in a Hood River County case. Foster, formerly the director of Columbia Riverkeeper and one of Attorney General John Kroger's highest-profile hires after Kroger won election in 2008, greeted the Marion County announcement with this ...   More

News Saturday won't be a leisurely day on Capitol Hill. After years of false starts and dead ends, the DREAM Act comes up for a vote again Saturday, Dec. 18 in the U.S. Senate, where advocates think the immigration bill finally stands a chance of passage. Also known as the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act, the bill (first crafted in 2001) would give undocumented young people who ...   More

News Today's Wall Street Journal editorial page (never a big fan of taxes) unloads on the after-effects of Measures 66 and 67—the personal and corporate tax increases Oregon voters passed in January. Here's the Journal's take: The Wall Street Journal Editorial December 21, 2010 Oregon raised its income tax on the richest 2% of its residents last year to fix its budget hole, but now ...   More

News The New York Times had a piece over the weekend reporting how members of the U.S. Senate demonstrated their respect for an Oregon colleague. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) was on the Senate floor Saturday a couple days before his surgery today for early-stage prostate cancer. The Times quotes Wyden saying, “Senators, let me thank all of you for your many kindnesses over the last 48 hours. ...   More

News The census numbers out this morning show Oregon didn't gain enough population in the last decade to add a sixth House seat, but that Washington has grown enough to add a 10th seat to its House delegation. The change also means one more electoral vote for Washington in the presidential election because each state's share in the Electoral College is based on adding its two senators plus its number ...   More

News Gov.-elect John Kitzhaber hasn't let the holidays slow his political action committee's collection of contributions. Since WW reported last week that the Democratic governor-elect was raising money to cover expenses for his transition to office next month, there have been several large and noteworthy donations to Kitzhaber 2010 over the past week. Among those on the list of donors since Dec. ...   More

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News Calling all bus riders: OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon is willing to pay you a $600 annual stipend to be on its advocacy team in 2011. The community organization is seeking TriMet bus riders who depend on public transit and want to help TriMet improve its system. OPAL co-director Rev. Joseph Santos-Lyons says his organization hopes to assemble five to 10 bus rider advocates. He expects ...   More